Ages 1-4 years with adult. Offered: October 4, 14, 20 & 26. Registrants will participate in a Fall - themed sensory activity and meet some of our Orange colored friends that call the Zoo home! Registration is required and open online now.
<a href="https://www.cmzoo.org/events/">Upcoming Events</a> › Zoo Events
Loading view.
Stroller Safaris: Scutes and Scales in September
Outdoor School: Native Nightlife
Ages Middle School & High School. Join us in this unique after-hours event as learners join zoo staff and teens to explore the wild wonders of the dark. We’ll learn about nocturnal animals found right in our backyard and the unique adaptations they have to make them so successful at night. Registration is required.
Kinder Kingdom: September’s Playful Pals (Sept. 30)
Ages 4-5 years. Kinder Kingdom is a half-day, camp-like setting that allows your little wanderers to create a connection with nature and new friends. Join us for September's theme where otters cuddle, lions roar, bees dance, and kindergarteners play! Animals in the kingdom have all different ways of communicating with their pals. Join us on our journey to learn how our animals at the Zoo play and communicate. Registration is required.
Stroller Safaris: All Things Orange in October
Ages 1-4 years with adult. Offered: October 4, 14, 20 & 26. Registrants will participate in a fall-themed sensory activity and meet some of our Orange colored friends that call the Zoo home! Registration is required and open online now.
Date Night Starlight Safari – Adults Only 21+ (Oct. 5, 26, 30, Nov. 17, Dec. 5, Jan. 20, Feb. 14)
Adults 21+. Offered Oct. 5, 26, *Halloween on Oct. 30, Nov. 17, Dec. 5, Jan 20 & Feb.14. Want a change of scenery on a weekend night? Come join us under the stars for an adults only private evening tour of our mountainside Zoo. We will enjoy a beverage to start off the night, then stroll under the stars to see what our animals do at night, we will even get an opportunity to meet one of our Loft animal ambassadors! This program is for adults only, 21+. Registration is required and open online now. If you would like to be on a wait list when any of our Date Night Starlight Safaris become sold out, please submit this form.
Outdoor School: Family, Forts and Fires
Ages: Families of all ages. Bring your family to learn something new at the zoo! Join zoo staff as we explore our zoo’s very own nature trail where we will have fun building forts and learn how to properly build fires outdoors! *Purchase of program includes daytime admission for participants. Registration is required.
Paint. Sip. Safari. (Oct. 10 or 24)
Ages 21+. Offered on October 10 or 24. Join us for an adults only program where you not only get to create memories but a painting of one of our amazing animals as well. Each month offers a different animal theme to paint. Spend the evening at the Zoo strolling through animal exhibits, enjoying an adult beverage, meeting animals up-close and creating a masterpiece! Registration is required.
Teen Naturalist Training Series #1 – (Oct. 11, 18 &/or 25)
Ages: Middle & High School. Register for one course or the three-course series. Naturalists play a valuable role in our Colorado community by engaging others in the appreciation of our natural world and beginning the conversation of how to protect it. This class will give our teenage community the skills and resources to understand more about our wild world and how to successfully share their stewardship with others. In order to protect it, we first need to understand it. Registration is required and closes 14 days prior to the start date. (Must have 6 participants to run the class.)
Boo at the Zoo – (October 20-22, 27-29 & 31)
Open 7 nights! Evenings of October 20-22, 27-29 & 31, 2023 - 3:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. All ages. Come see the original creatures of the night. It’ll be all treats and no tricks for your little pirates and princesses at this year’s Boo at the Zoo, the region’s most unique Halloween event. Boo at the Zoo is a fun way for families with young children to trick-or-treat and enjoy Halloween festivities in a safe environment, and all of our candy is made with sustainable palm oil to help protect wild orangutans! Advance timed admission tickets are required, and are on sale now.
Outdoor School: Kids Nature Photography
Ages 1st - 5th grade. Combine technology with the wonders of the outdoors as your child explores something new! Learners will enjoy nature through a whole new lens while also learning about wildlife and the outdoors. *Purchase of program includes daytime admission for participants. Registration is required.
Kinder Kingdom: Bug’s Life
Ages 4-5 years old. Join us as we shrink into the life of bugs! These tiny friends may be at the bottom of the food chain, but are strong, mighty and have an important role in their environment! Registration is required.
Outdoor School: Bear Aware
Ages 3rd - 6th grade. Living in bear country means you can never be too safe. Come learn from zoo professionals as we walk you through what it means to be Bear Aware. We’ll practice outdoor safety skills, learn how to properly use bear spray, and even meet our resident Grizzly Bears. *Purchase of program includes daytime admission for participants. Registration is required.
Hands-On Homeschool: Scavengers and Skulls
Ages: Elementary (1st-5th grade) & Middle School (6th-8th). Join us for a chillingly good time as we learn the best tricks and treats of scavengers. Scavengers may seem scary, but these misunderstood animals are some of the most important of the animal kingdom. We will even get to meet a few up close! Registration is required.
Special Holiday Stroller Safaris: Spooky Skeletons
Ages 1-4 with adult. Offered October 28 & 31. Special holiday program. This special holiday edition includes Meet & Greets with a few of our “creepy crawly” but still adorable animals from My Big Back Yard, and painting your own mini pumpkin to take home with you! Costumes are both welcome and encouraged for participants of all ages! Registration is required.
Holiday Special Date Night Starlight Safari: Spooky Safari
Ages 21+. Special Holiday Date Night Starlight Safari offered on Monday, October 30. Come join us for the Spooky Safari after hours...if you dare. Put a little spooky into your next date night and join us on the mountainside. During this Halloween-themed night tour for adults (21+) only, you will experience Cheyenne Mountain like never before. Explore the zoo under the stars by lantern light. Spy our animal friends in the darkness using night vision goggles, and enjoy a complimentary adult beverage and Halloween games along the way. This experience is for guests 21+. Costumes are encouraged. Registration is required.
Teen Only Starlight Safari – (Nov. 3)
Ages 6th-12th grades. Offered Sept. 15, or Nov. 3. We will roast s'mores and walk among the stars as we tour our Zoo amidst the dark skies. Spend an evening exploring what the animals do while the rest of the world is sleeping. We will tour multiple buildings as well as have a chance to meet an animal up-close! Registration is required.
Outdoor School: Nature’s Builders
Ages K - 2nd grades. Whether it’s a beaver building a dam or an elephant knocking down trees, animals have a special way of changing the world around them. Through hands-on activities we will learn how both wildlife and humans from all over the world can change their homes. Registration is required.
Teen Community Workshop: Conservation Photography
Ages: Middle School & High School. Come put your skills to the test and learn how photography can be a unique approach to wildlife conservation. No previous experience is necessary and any camera or phone will work. Registration is required.
Paint. Sip. Safari. (Nov. 7 or 21)
Ages 21+. Offered on November 7 or 21. Join us for an adults only program where you not only get to create memories but a painting of one of our amazing animals as well. Each month offers a different animal theme to paint. Spend the evening at the Zoo strolling through animal exhibits, enjoying an adult beverage, meeting animals up-close and creating a masterpiece! Registration is required.
Outdoor School: Neighborhood Naturalists
Ages 3rd - 5th grade. Join us in this young learners program as we study the wonders of Colorado nature from right in our own backyard. We’ll learn how to best live with local wildlife, identify native plants, and how to best protect our home environments. Registration is required.
Outdoor School: Utilitarian Basket Weaving (Nov. 17-19)
Ages 16+. No experience required. This is a 2.5-day course. Need something to put your pet toys in, or maybe to store hats and mittens, to put the mail in, or just to help clean up a cluttered corner? Get creative while you learn to weave a beautiful and functional basket that fits your lifestyle. The first evening of class we’ll start with a history of the basket, go over terminology, and walk through the process of weaving a basket to completion. Next, we’ll create a basket base and begin to weave height into it as you shape and form it to your own creative desires. You’ll have two full days to put your creativity to the test as you finish the course with a completed basket to take home and show off. Bring a friend and come join us for 2.5 days of basket weaving fun! REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED – Registration closes 14 days prior to the start date. Must have 6 participants to run the class.
Fall Break Day Camps (1st-6th Grades) – Nov. 20, 21, 22
Ages 1st - 6th grades. Offered Monday - Wednesday, November 20, 21 & 22. Sign up for any one day or all three. Join us for Living Legends. From the zoo to our own backyards, Colorado is home to legendary animals. Join us in discovering what special skills Rocky Mountain wildlife need in order to survive. Then learn your own set of outdoor protection skills so you can be a Local Legend too! Registration is required.
Electric Moonlight
Adults 21+. Celebrate holiday lights and cheer during this adults-only event, Electric Moonlight. This event combines our festive holiday lights with indoor sampling areas featuring beer, wine, spirits and soft drinks while tasting delicious eats from area restaurants (all while supplies last) – just like at our popular summer event, Larger-than-life illuminated inflatable animals! Moonlight on the Mountain! Advance timed e-tickets must be purchased in advance, and are subject to selling out. (No one under age 21 will be permitted, including no children or infants.) Tickets will be on sale closer to the event.
Run to the Shrine
Cheyenne Mountain Zoo invites all ages of world class runners and families alike to Run to the Shrine, offered on the evenings of Saturday, May 18 and Sunday May 19, 2024. Run to the Shrine is a 4-mile run/walk course that curves through the Zoo, up to the Will Rogers Shrine of the Sun and back down into the Zoo. Run to the Shrine has become an annual Cheyenne Mountain Zoo tradition, and it is the only time of the year that guests are allowed to travel up to the Shrine of the Sun by foot! In addition, Run to the Shrine is an important fundraiser for the Zoo. Registration is required and opens closer to the event.
Featured Event
Find out more »
Moonlight on the Mountain
Kick off your summer with Cheyenne Mountain Zoo during the first adults-only event of the season! Don’t miss this adults-only event. Enjoy all-inclusive samples of beer, wine, spirits and soft drinks while tasting delicious eats from area restaurants. Local musicians will set the mood throughout the Zoo and have you dancing the night away until 10 p.m. This evening is for adults 21 and older ONLY. IDs must be presented on event night. Advance tickets are required. Looking for more magical evenings on the mountain this summer? Learn about our Tails, Tunes & Tastes.
Tails, Tunes & Tastes
Ages 21+. Join us for a magical evening on the mountain, exclusively reserved for those age 21 and up. Local musicians will set the mood throughout the Zoo! Tickets to Tails, Tunes & Tastes include unlimited small plates and two drink tickets. Cash bars also available. (No one under age 21 will be permitted, including no children or infants.) Advanced tickets are required and will be on sale closer to the event.
Tails, Tunes & Tastes
Ages 21+. Join us for a magical evening on the mountain, exclusively reserved for those age 21 and up. Local musicians will set the mood throughout the Zoo! Tickets to Tails, Tunes & Tastes include unlimited small plates and two drink tickets. Cash bars also available. (No one under age 21 will be permitted, including no children or infants.) Advanced tickets are required.
Military Appreciation Week
Join us for Military Appreciation Week at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo! It’s a week of even bigger thanks to our military personnel for their continued service to our great country. This week’s military discount features 50% off the day's normal admission base price, which is offered to all active-duty, veteran and retired military personnel and their dependents living in the same household. To enjoy a full week of stars and stripes, purchase your advance timed tickets and march on up to the Zoo!
Silent Night at the Zoo
All ages. Full Zoo experience (except sky ride and carousel). Dining options will be limited. We invite you to a unique Zoo event, Silent Night on Wednesday, September 11, 2024. Our busy lives are often filled with schedules, responsibilities and noise. Come prepared for a peacefully quiet evening away from the pressures of the city below. Advance e-tickets are required and will be on sale closer to the event.